Wireless corn-planter.



I. L. DBMPSEY.

WIRELESS COR-N PLANTER.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 1, 1912.

1 1 22,701, Patented Dec. 29, 1914.

3 SHEBTSSHEET 1 A1 {unnum- I 5 15521! u. 1. 1,. u: 1| u u u u u u 77 ix- W 7? i i 7( ffizerqvy attomu g I. L. DEMPSEY.

WIRELESS CORN PLANTER.

APPLIOATION FILED APR. 1, 1912.

1, 1 22,701, Patented Dec. 29, 1914.

3 SHEETS-SHEET Z.

. JLKH I. L. DEMPSEY. WIRELESS CORN PLANTER. APPLICATION FILED APR. 1,1912v 1,1 22,701. Patented Dec. 29, 1914.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 8.

IRVING L. DEMPSEY, 0F GALENA, MARYLAND.

WIRELESS CORN-PLANTER.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, IRVING L. DEMPSEY, citizen of the United States,residing at Galena, in the county of Kent and State of Maryland, haveinvented certain -new and useful Improvements in Wireless Corn-Planters, of which the following is a specification.

This invention has relation to wireless corn planters and has for itsobject to provide a timin deviceadapted to be operated at will for thepurpose of advancing or re tarding the action of the seed droppingmechanism with relation to the movement of the machine. 1

A further object of the invention is to provide in combination with aseed dropping mechanism a hill marking mechanism which is adapted tooperate in a peculiar manner for indicating approximately where thehills are located in a field in order that the operator may observe themarks and thereby gain an idea as to whether the timing device should beoperated to advance or retard the operation of the seed droppingmechanism.

WVith these and other objects in view the mechanism includes a treadledevice adapted to be manipulated by the foot of the operator, therebyleaving his hands and arms free for control of the draft animals of theI machine. This foot treadle mechanism is operatively connected withmeans for normally holding an operating shaft at a state of rest, butwhen the treadle mechanism is operated the shaft becomes active andoperates the seed dropping mechanism of the 7 seed boxes.

Motionto this shaft is transmitted directly from a ground wheel which isindependent of the traction wheels of the planter and which is arrangedto be raised out of contact with the ground when the planter shoesarenraised at the end of a row for the purposeof turning the machine, orwhen the machine is moved from field to field.

For a full understanding of the invention, reference is to be had to thefollowing description and accompanying drawings in which Figure 1 is atop plan view of the planter.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the same. Fig.

Specification of Letters Patent.

7 Application filed April 1, 1912.

'tional tached parts. Fig. 5 is a transverse secportion of the view ofsaid ground wheel. Fig. 6 is a detailed view of a clutch mechanism usedupon the planter. Fig. 7 is a side elevation of a hill marker used uponthe planter showing parts in section. Fig. 8 is a perspective view of anintermediate portion 0 said hill marking device. Fig. 9 is adiagrammatic side elevation of parts of the planter illustrating themanner in which a secondary traction wheel is elevated simultaneouslywith the elevation of the runners. Fig. 10 is a perspective view of theshiftable brace connecting the marker arms 62 and adapted to lie uponthe face of the cam 61 Fig. 11 is a perspective view of a portion of theforward frame 7.

Corresponding and like parts are referred to in the followingdescription and indicated in all the views of the accompanying drawingsby the same reference characters.

The planter consists of a frame 1 which is mounted upon an axle 2, whichis in turn mounted upon traction wheels 3 in the usual manner. The usualoperators seat 4 is mounted upon the frame 1. A shaft 6 is journaled ina forward frame 7 which is pivotally connected with the main frame 1,and the draft tongue 8 is connected with the frame 7 in the usualmanner. The shaft 6 is operatively connected with the droppingmechanisms in the seed boxes 5 which are mounted upon the forward frame7 in the usual manner. mounted upon the frame 1, and is operativelyconnected with the tongue 8 in the usual manner and is adapted to swingthe rear portion of the tongue, whereby the forward part of the frame 1maybe raised or lowered. Runners 10 are connected with the frame 7 inthe usual manner and are adapted to operate as furrow openers. Tubes 11leading down from the discharge outlets of the seed boxes 5 areconnected at their lower ends with the said runners.

The parts of the planter hereinbefore described are those usually foundin such structures, and it is therefore considered unnecessary to gointo further detail in order to bring out the features involved in thesubject matter of the present invention.

A sprocket wheel 12 is mounted upon the axle 2 and a sprocket wheel 13is loosely journaled upon the shaft 6. chain 19$ is trained around thesprocket wheels 12 and 13 and passes over a sprocket A. sprocket wheel15 which is fixed to a shaft 16 mounted upon the frame 1. This shaft 16is not only journaled for rotation but it may be moved at one end uponits other end as a pivot in a forward and backward direction along theframe 1, see Fig. 1, the object of which will be explained hereinafter.A clutch member 17 is fixedto a side of the sprocket-wheel 13 so as torotate therewith. A dog 18 is mounted on the shaft 6 to rotate therewithand is adapted to engage the member 17 and connect the shaft 6 therewithto operate the seed dropping mechanism in the manner well understood.The dog 18 is pivoted to a plate 18 secured to the shaft 6, said platehaving an extension 18 through which .a pin 18 passes loosely. The pin18 is pivoted to the dog 18 and receives an expansible helical spring 18by means of which the dog 18 is thrown into engagement with the clutchmember 17 when such dog is released from all restraining influence. Apawl 19 is pivoted upon the frame 7 and is normally held by a spring 20in engagement with the trip dog 18 to hold the same out of operativeengagement with the clutch member 17; however when the pawl 19 is moved,as will be hereinafter explained, it permits the trip dog 18 to fallinto engagement with the clutch member 17 whereby the shaft 6 is rotatedin unison with the clutch member 17 and the wheel 13.

A shaft 21 is journaled for rotation upon the frame 1 and is providedwith a sprocket wheel 22. An auxiliary traction wheel 23 of a peculiarform is mounted upon the axle 2 and is provided at its side with asprocket wheel 24. A sprocket chain 25 is trained around the sprocketwheels 22 and 24: and is adapted to transmit rotary movement from thewheel 23 to the shaft 21. The wheel 23 is provided with a rim 26 whichis circular in transverse section as best illustrated in Fig. 1 of thedrawings. The rim of this wheel is connected by means of spokes 27 witha ring 28, see Fig. 4. A block 29 is loosely received in the mug 28whereby the said ring may revolve about the periphery of the block. Theblock 29 is provided with an arcuate slot 30 which receives the axle 2in a manner which is best shown in Figs. 4: and 5. An arm 31 ispivotally connected at one end with the frame 1 and at its other end isfixed to the block 29, whereby the said block is held against rotation.An arm 32 is fixed to the block 29 and is provided at its rear end withan upstanding pin 33 which is slidably received in a guide 34 carriedbythe frame 1, as shown in Fig. 2. The pin 33 is free to move up and downin the guide 34. A bell crank lever 35 is fulcrumed upon the frame 1 andhas one end portion lying directly below the lower edge of the arm 31. Arod 36 is ivotally connected with the other end of t e said bell cranklever and is also pivotally connected with an arm depending from theplanter frame 7.

At this point it is deemed advisable to give a. description of theoperation of the wheel 23 in conjunction with the parts that areoperatively connected with the tube 11. When the lever 9 is swungrearwardly and the rear end of the tongue 8i's moved in an upwarddirection, in consequence of the fact that the forward end of the saidtongue is supported upon the neck yoke of the draft animals, the forwardpart of the frame 1 is raised. This carries the frame 7 up, which inturn lifts the tubes 11. Inasmuch as the frame 7 is pivotally connectedwith the forward end of the frame 1, there is a swinging movementbetween the two frames, and as the tubes 11 move in an upward direction,as indicated, the rod 36 is moved rear ward longitudinally, whereby thebell crank lever 35 is swung upon its fulcrum. This movement on the partof the bell crank lever swings the arm 31 in an upwarddirection and theblock 29 is moved in an upward direction transverselywith relation tothe axle 2; therefore the wheel 23 is moved in an upward direction sothat its lower part is carried out of contact with the surface of thesoil, and being relieved of frictional contact with the soil, the saidwheel will come to a state of rest. At the same time runners 10 carriedat the lower ends of the tubes 11 are lifted above the surface of thesoil; therefore when the said runners are elevated the operation of theshaft 21 from the wheel 23 is interrupted. This operation is caused totake place at the end of each row when it is desired to turn the machinearound, and also takes place when the machine is being moved from fieldto field. However, it may be accomplished at any time. It is obviousthat when the lever 9 is swung in a forward direction that the movementof the parts will be reversed from that above described and theauxiliary traction wheel lowered into 'tractive engagement with theground.

A crank arm 37 is carried at the inner end of the shaft 21, as shownbest in Fig. 3, and is provided with a roller 38 which is adapted tooperate as a tappet inconjunction with bell crank lever 39, which isfulcrumed upon ears projecting from a gear wheel 56 and has an endportion 40 disposed in the path of movement of the roller- 38. Duringthe rotation of the shaft 21 the bell crank lever 39 will rotate in aplane approximately parallel to the line of travel of the machine, whilethe crank 37 also rotates in a plane parallel with the line of movementof the machine and coincident with the plane of travel of the member 40.When the roller 38 engages the end portion 40 of the bell crank lever39, the saidend portion of the bell crank lever is moved in a forwarddirection; consequently the other end portion of the lever is moved in adirection transverse to the line of travel of the machine. The shaft 41is journaled 5 upon the frame 1 in line with shaft 21 and is hollowthroughout its length. A rod 42 passes through the shaft 41 and isconnected at one end with the end of the bell crank lever 39. A coiledspring 43 is seated at one end in the shaft 41 and at its other endbears against a stop button 44 mounted upon the rod 42. This spring isunder tension with a tendency to retract the rod 42 and thus draw inwardin the'bell crank 39 {5 and hold the end 40 normally in the path ofmovement of the roller 38. A bell crank lever 45 is. fulcrumed upon theframe 1 and one end thereof is connected with the end of rod 42. Theother end of the said bell crank lever 45 lies .under the lower edge ofa pawl 46. The inner end of pawl 46 is pivotally connected with the pawl19 and is provided with a hooked end 47 and a hump 48 which is spacedfrom the said end 47. A gear wheel 49 is fixed to the shaft 16 and itsteeth are adapted to be engaged by the end 47 of the pawl 46, and whenthe teeth of the said wheel come in contact with the hump 48, the pawl46 is depressed to such an extent that its upstanding end is movedbelowthe path of movement of the teeth of the wheel 49. p

A treadle 50 is mounted upon the shaft of lever 9, and rods 51operatively connect the forward part of the treadle with the shiftableend portion of the shaft 16. A rod 52 operatively connects the rearportion of the treadle 50 with the links 53 that are pivotally mountedupon the shaft 16. A gear wheel 54 is mounted upon the shaft 16 andmeshes with the gear wheel 55 which is carried by the links 53. A gearwheel 56 is mounted upon the shaft 41 and is adapted to be engaged byeither of the gear wheels 54 or 55. The rod 42 hereinbefore describedpasses through the center of the gear wheel 56. A pawl 57 is pivotallymounted upon the frame 1 and normally engages the teeth of the gearwheel 56, whereby the said gear wheel is restrained against rotation.This pawl has upon its side a pin 58. A rod 59 is pivotally connected atone end with the shaft 16 and is provided at its other end with a slot60 which receives the pin 58 upon the pawl 57. A rod 61 is pivotallyconnected at one end with one of the links 53and is provided at itsother end with a slot 62 which loosely receives the said pin 58. Thepawl 57 is normally held in engagement with the teeth of the wheel 56 bya spring 63, one end of which is connected with the pawl and the otherend is connected with a part of frame 7. When the foot treadle 50 isswung so that the rods 51 are moved in a forward direc- 65 tion, thewheel 54 is carried into engagement with the teeth of the wheel 56, androtates the latter. This wheel and shaft 16 are rotated by theengagement of the chain 14 with the wheel 15. At the same time that theupper end of the foot treadle 50 is moved forward the rear end of slot60 engages the pin 58 and moves the pawl 57 forward so that the end ofthe said pawl disengages from the teeth of the wheel 56. When the rearend portion of the foot treadle 50 is depressed, the rods 51 and 52 movethe wheel 54 out of engagement with and wheel 55 into engagement withthe teeth of the wheel 56 and at the same time the rear end of slot 62engages the pin 58, whereby the end of 30' the pawl 57 is moved out ofengagement with the teeth of wheel 56. It is of course understood thatwhen the wheel 54 engages the wheel 56, the wheel 56 will be turned inone direction but when the wheel 55 engages the wheel 56, and the wheel54 is out of engagement with the wheel 56, the wheel 56 will be rotatedin a direction opposite to that in which it rotates when the wheel 54 isin engagement with the same. In the neutral position of the parts, thewheels 54 and 55 are both out of engagement with the gear wheel 56 andhence this car wheel remains stationary and is held in position by thepawl 57, the spring 63 holding the pawl in the position illustrated inFig. 3. The gear wheels 55 and 56, the rods 59 and 61 are for thepurpose of advancing or retarding the tripping of the seed droppingmechanism and except for this function of retarding or advancingj'theinstant of contact between the member 40 and the roller 38, they are notnecessary to the operation of the machine.

The bell crank lever 39 is carried at the side of the wheel 56 as bestshown in Fig. 3; therefore as the said wheel 56 is rotated in onedirection or the other the position of the bell crank lever 39 withrelation to the axis of the shaft 21 (which is in a constant state ofrotation) is varied and by turning the wheel 56 the roller 38 may becaused to engage the end 40 of the lever 39 earlier or later, that is,the instant of engagement may be advanced or. retarded, and thisaccomplishes the advancing or retarding of the operation of the seeddropping mechanism with relation to the movement of the machine.Therefore, it will be seen that a simple and an effective mechanism foroperating the dropping devices of a'planter is provided, that means isprovided whereby the auxiliary traction wheel may be lifted out ofengagement with the ground simultaneously with the elevation of therunners. By varying the diameter of the wheel 22, the rate of speed ofrotation of the shaft 21 with relation to the rotation of the wheel 23may be varied as occasion or conditions require. After the pawl 19 hasbeen disenga ed from the dog 18, as hereinbefore described, the 130parts carried by the shaft 41 are returned to their normal conditions bythe spring 43.

The operation of that part of the inven tion which has been described isas follows: As the machine moves over the ground the traction wheels 3will of course rotate, and if the auxiliary traction wheel 23 isdepressed it also will rotate by engagement with the ground. This willcause a continuous rotation of the shaft 21 in a counterclockwisedirection. As this shaft rotates, the roller 38 will strike the terminalend 40 of the tripping bell crank lever 39. This bell crank at thismoment of engagement will be shifted against the force of spring 43.This shifting of the rod 42 shifts the bell crank lever 45, lifting thelatch rod 46 into engagement with wheel 49 which at this time is alsorotating in a counterclockwise direction. The engagement of the rod 46with the teeth 49 causes a retraction of the pawl 19 out of engagementwith the clutch member 18, and this in turn causes shaft 6 to beclutched to sprocket 13 and the seed planting mechanism to be actuated.The withdrawal of the dog 19 is merely momentary as almost immediatelyafter the hook 47 has engaged the teeth 49, the hump 48 will be struckby the teeth 49 and the hook 47 again disengaged from the teethpermitting the pawl 19 to snap back to its original position where itwill again engage with the member 18 in the rotation of the shaft 6. Inother words, the rotation of the shaft 6 is dependent upon theengagement of the roller 38 with the trip 40. If now it is desired toadvance the instant of seed dropping, the wheel 54 is engaged with wheel56. This causes a rotation of the rotatable trip carrier wheel 56 in aclockwise direction and carries the tripping bell crank 39 in thedirection toward the advancing roller 38. If it is desired to retard theinstant of seed dropping then the wheel 54 is shifted out of engagementwith the timing wheel 56 and the wheel 55 is shifted into suchengagement. This communicates'a reverse movement to wheel 56 and thetripping bell crank is carriedin the same direction as the direction oftravel of the roller 38, thus retarding the time of engagement betweenthe two. Normally, of course, neither the wheel 54 or 55 is inengagement with the timing wheel 56 and under these circumstances theengagement between the roller 38 and the terminal end 40 of the tripbell crank occurs at regular intervals.

A shaft 59 is journaled upon the front frame 7 and extends transverselyacross the tongue 8. This shaft is provided at its ends with marker arms60. Cams 61 are mounted upon the shaft 6 and are arranged to rotate inunison with the same. Arms 62 are carried by the shaft 59 and. lieagainst the peripheries of the cams '61;

therefore as the said cams 61 rotate the rear ends of the rods 62 willrise and fall, wherebythe shaft 59 is rocked and the hill markers 61 areraised and lowered. As these hill markers move in a downward directionthey strike the soil and make depressions therein which indicateapproximately the droppings of the seed. Lugs 63 and 64 are fixed to theintermediate portion of the shaft 59, the lug 63 being forwardlydepressed and the lug 64 rearwardly depressed. Coil springs 65 areinterposed between these lugs and the tongue 8. These lugs and springsare adapted to control the rocking movement of the shaft 59'. Thatis tosay, when the deep parts of the cams 61 are passing under the rear endsof the arms 62, the shaft 59 is turned so that the lug 63 presses theforward spring 65; therefore when the deep parts of the cams passfromunder the rear ends of the arms 62 the tension of thespring 65 under thelug 63 causes the said shaft 59 to turn promptly, and, therefore, themarkers 61 are caused to move rapidly toward the soil and enter thesame, -making the marks as indicated. At the same'time, the lug 64 isswung down and compresses the rear spring 65; therefore after themarkers 60 have made the-marks in the soil, they are rapidly moved in anupward direction for a short distance under the tension of the spring 65under the lug 64, and thus the markers are rapidly lifted from the soiland are not permitted to drag for any considerable distance in the same.

It will be noted that all the power tooperate the seed droppingmechanism and shift the timing wheel 56 comes from the main tractionwheels 3 but that the power for releasing the tripping mechanismcomesentirely from the'auxiliary traction wheel. Where the power of themain traction wheels is used to time the tripping mechanism, thetripping mechanism can not be actuatedevenly, that is, at regularintervals so as to plant the seed even distances apart.

The reason for this is that the main traction mechanism has to doconsiderable work and therefore there is considerable resistance to itsrotation. This renders the wheels liable to slip on the ground andcauses lost\ motion. Furthermore, these traction wheels accumulate soilin passing over wet ground and this soil gathered upon the circumferenceof the traction wheel will tend to give an irregular movement theretoand give an irregular timing.

The timing mechanism which I have devised is very sensitive and easilyoperated and hence it requires comparatively little traction power tooperate. Very little strain therefore comes upon wheel 23 and hence thisauxiliary traction wheel is not so liable to slip as the main tractionwheels,

soil and gather the same.

:5 turned at the ends of rows.

particularly as it is so formed that it will not accumulate the soil.The rim of the auxiliary traction wheel is circular in transversesection so that it will not cling to the F urthrmore the auxiliarytraction wheel is so mounted as not to be alfected by the weight of themachine and will hence accurately follow the contour of the ground andaccurately operate the seed dropping mechanism. The timing mechanism ortrip releasing mechanism it will be seen is entirely under the controlof the auxiliary traction wheel and is entirely independent of the maindriving mechanism. The device for advancing or retarding the instant ofactuation of the seed dropping mechanism is entirely under the controlof the operator and by its use the hills may be maintained in true checkrow alinement \irrespective of the contour of the soil or otherconditions. Inasmuch as the auxiliary traction wheel 23 is raised fromthe ground si: multaneously with the lifting of the runners, the plantermay be easily and quickly Furthermore it is easy to adjust the timingmechanism at the beginning of the planting and before the auxiliarytraction wheel is lowered so that the planting may take place at any sodesired point.

The markers of the planter are controlled by the same shaft thatcontrols the dropping of the seed; therefore the marks are made in theground in exact line with the 5 corn planted and show the location ofevery hill andv when starting in to plant new rovs, before setting theshoes into the ground, the operator can time the machine so that it willplant the first hills of the rows to be planted in line with the lastones in the rows just planted by turning the secondarytiming wheel(which is free to rotate) either backward or forward as the case mayrequire. When the machine is at rest the timis done by hand. Vhat isclaimed is:

1. In a planter, seed dropping mechanism, main traction wheels, anauxiliary traction wheel, a clutch adapted to opera- 5o tively connectthe seed dropping mechanism with the main traction wheels, means forholding the clutch from operation, tripping means connected to saidholding means, means for operating the said tripping means normally outof operative engagement therewith andactuated by the main tractionwheels, and means operatively connected to the auxiliary traction wheelfor periodically connecting the trip operating means with said trippingmeans.

2. In a planter, seed dropping mechanism includinga shaft, a clutchthereon comprising two members, main traction wheels operativelyconnected to one member of the clutch, means for holding the otherclutch member normally disengaged from the firstnamed member, means fortripping said holding member, means for operating said tripping meansactuated by the main traction wheels, an auxiliary traction wheel, andmeans periodically operated by the auxiliary traction wheel andoperatively connected to the tripping means to shift the tripping meansinto engagement with its operating means.

In a planter, seed dropping mechanism, main traction wheels, means foroperating the seed dropping mechanism from the main traction wheelsnormally disengaged from the seed dropping mechanism, means foroperatively connecting said operating means with the seed droppingmeohanism, means operated by the main traction wheels for operating saidconnecting means but normally out of engagement therewith, an auxiliarytraction wheel, and means 0p erated by the auxiliary traction wheel forperiodically engaging the said connecting means with its tractionoperated means.

4. In aseed planter, main traction wheels, seed dropping mechanismincluding a shaft, a clutch thereon, comprising two members, means fordriving one member of the clutch from the main traction wheels, meansfor holding the other member of the clutch normally disengaged from thefirst-named member, means for tripping the holding member to therebypermit the seed dropping mechanism to be driven by said driving means,means operated by the main traction wheels for actuating said trippingmeans but normally disengaged therefrom, an auxiliary traction wheel,and a shaft journaled on the planter and operatively connected to theauxiliary traction wheel, said shaft operatively engaging periodicallythe said tripping means to shift the tripping means into operativeengagement with its actuating means.

5. In a planter, seed dropping mechanism, main traction wheels, avertically movable auxiliary traction wheel, a clutch for operativelyconnecting the seed dropping mechanism with the main traction wheels,means for holding the clutch out of operation, means for tripping theholding means, means operatively connected to the main traction wheelsfor actuating said tripping means but normally out of engagementtherewith, means driven by the auxiliary clutch thereon, compris- 1ngtwo members,

main traction Wheels,

means for driving one member of the clutch from the main tractionwheels, means for seeddropping means inholding the other member normallydisengaged from the first-named member of the clutch, means for trippingthe holding member, means operated by the main traction wheels foractuating said tripping means but normally out of engagement therewith,an auxiliary traction Wheel, means periodically actuated by theauxiliary traction Wheel, adapted to shift the tripping means intoengagement with its actuating means, and manually controlled means foradvancing or retarding the instant of operation of the said shiftingmeans.

7. In a planter, seed dropping mechanism, a clutch comprising twomembers, one member being operatively connected to the seed droppingmechanism, main traction wheels operatively connected to the othermember, means for holding the other member normally disengaged from thefirst-named member, means for tripping said holding means, means foractuating said tripping means operated from the said main tractionwheels but normally out of engagement with the tripping means, and anauxiliary ,traction wheel operated means adapted periodically to shiftthe tripping means into operative engagement with lts actuating means.

8. In a planter, main traction wheels, seed dropping mechanism, aclutch, one member of which is operatively connected to the seeddropping mechanism and the other member of which is connected to themain traction Wheels, means for holding the members normally disengaged,means for tripping the holding member, means operated by the maintraction wheels for actuating said tripping means but normallydisconnected therefrom, a secondary tractlon means adapted to move thetripping means rnto operative engagement with its actuating means atpredetermined intervals, and

manually controlled means driven from the main traction wheels forvarying the instant of engagement between the tripping means and itsactuating means.

9. In a planter, main traction means, seed dropping mechanism, means foroperatively connecting the seed dropping mechanism with the maintraction means, means for holding said connecting means from operation,means for releasing the holding means and adapted to be operated by themain traction means, a secondary traction means adapted to periodicallyengage the releasing means with its actuating means at predeterminedintervals, and manually controlled means operated by the main tractionmeans for advancing or retarding the engagement of said releasing meanswith its actuating means.

rotating the last mentioned shaft, a wheel journaled upon the planterand adapted to be rotated from the first-mentioned shaft when the saidshaft is moved into one position, a clutch device operatively connectedwith the seed dropping mechanism and having one of its membersoperatively connected with the primary traction means, means fornormally holding the other clutch member out of engagement with thefirst-mentioned clutch member, and means carried by said wheel andadapted to be operated from the se'condmentioned shaft at intervals forconnecting the holding means of the last mentioned clutch withthefirst-mentioned shaft'whereby the said second-named clutch member may bereleased.

11. In a planter, a main frame, main traction wheels supporting thesame, a front frame pivotally connected thereto, a tongue connected tothe front frame, seed dropping mechanism mounted upon the front frame,driving means for operating said seed dropping mechanism from the maintraction wheels, but normally out of engagement with the seed droppingmechanism, means for connecting the driving means with the seed droppingmechanism, means for hold} ing the connecting means from operation,

means for tripping said holding means, "L7

means operated by the main traction wheels for actuating said trippingmeans but normally disengaged therefrom, an auxiliary traction wheel,means operated thereby for shifting said tripping means into operativeif engagement with its actuating means, and means for automaticallyelevating the auxiliary traction Wheel out of contact With the groundwhen the front frame is raised.

12. In combination with a planter, includ- 1? ing a Wheel supported mainframe, a tonguebearing frame pivotally connected thereto, a levermechanism mounted uponthe main frame and operatively connected with thetongue-bearing frame to raise or lower the nism, means for connectingthe seed dropping mechanism with the driving means, means for holdingsaid connecting means from operation, means for tripping said disengagedfrom the seed dropping mecha- 3.1

holding means, means actuated by the main traction wheels for actuatingsaid tripping means but normally disengaged therefrom, an auxiliarywheelmounted upon the axle of the main frame, means operativelyconnected with said Wheel for periodically shifting the tripping meansinto engagement with its actuating means, and means for automaticallylifting the auxiliary wheel out of contact with the ground whenthetongue-bearing frame is elevated 13. In a planter, seed droppingmechanism including a rotatable shaft, main traction wheels, clutchmechanism adapted to operatively connect the rotatable shaft with themain traction wheels, a toothed Wheel operated by said main tractionwheels, a tripping device'nor'mally holding the clutch out of operativeposition and including a member movable into engagement with the toothedwheel, said wheel acting to trip the clutch mechanism by engagement withsaid member, a lever adapted when shifted in one direction to shift said,member into engagement with the toothed wheel, a member adapted tooperatively engage with and adapted to shift said lever, a supplementarytraction wheel, a shaft operatively connected to and rotated thereby,and an arm projecting from the shaft and adapted to engage saidlast-named member to thereby shift the tripping mechanism intoengagement with the said first-named toothed wheel at predeterminedintervals.

14. In a planter, seed dropping mechanism including a rotatable shaft,main traction wheels, a clutch mechanism adapted to operatively connectthe rotatable shaft with the main traction wheels, means for holding theclutch out of operative position, a toothed wheel driven by the maintraction wheels, a member connected to said holding means and movableinto engagement with the toothed wheel means may be tripped, a tubularshaft, a toothed Wheel mounted upon the tubular shaft, a rod extendingthrough the toothed wheel, a bell crank lever having one arm connectedto said rod and the. other arm extending beneath the member whereby anactuation of the rod will move the member laterally into engagement withthe toothed wheel, a bell crank lever carried upon the said toothedwheel and having one arm connected to the rod passing through thetubular shaft, a supplementary traction wheel, a shaft operativelyconnected thereto and having a projecting arm adapted in its travel toengage with the projecting arm of the last-named bell crank lever, andmanually controlled means for shifting the gear wheel and tubular shaftin one or the other direction to thereby shift the position of the bellcrank lever carried thereby with relation to the arm on the last-namedshaft.

15. In a planter, seed dropping mechawhereby the holding nism, maintraction Wheels, an auxiliary traction wheel rotating independently ofthe main traction Wheels, means operated by the main traction wheel fordriving the said dropping mechanism but normally disengaged from thelatter, shiftable means for connecting said driving means with the saidseed dropping mechanism, means driven by the main driving wheels foractuating said shifting means but normally out of disengagementtherewith, and means operated by the auxiliary traction wheel forperiodically engaging said shifting means with its actuating means.

16. In a planter, seed dropping mechanism, main traction wheels, anauxiliary traction Wheel, means adapted to operatively connect the seeddropping mechanism with the main traction wheels, means for holding saidconnecting means out of operation, means adapted to trip said holdingmeans and operated by the main traction wheels, and means operated bythe auxiliary traction wheel for periodically connecting said trippingmeans with its actuating means.

17. In a planter, seed dropping mechanism, includin a seed shaft, aclutch thereon, comprising wo members, main traction wheels operativelyconnected to one of the members of the clutch, means for holding theclutch members normally disengaged, means for tripping said holdingmeans, and including a rotatable element having an arm, and a rotatableelement having an arm disposed in the path of movement of thefirst-named arm, one of said rotatable elements having gear-teeth, ashaft operatively driven from the main traction wheels, a gear wheel onthe shaft adapted to mesh with said toothed element, a gear wheelmeshing with the first-named gear-wheel and also adapted to be shiftedinto mesh with the toothed element, and manually controlled means forshifting either of the gear wheels into engagement with the toothedelement to thereby rotate the toothed element in one direction or. theother to shift a IRVING L. DEMPSEY. [1,. s.l

Witnesses:

CAYOT BEASTON, Jnssn E. IRELAND.

my signature

